Question 1

How does cash-and-carry arbitrage work in crypto?

Accepted Answer

You buy the asset on the spot market and simultaneously short an equal notional in a dated future or perpetual that trades at a premium (positive basis). Your net price exposure is zero. As expiry approaches the future converges to spot, and you pocket the premium regardless of which way the market moved.

Question 2

Is the basis yield really risk-free?

Accepted Answer

No — it is market-neutral, not risk-free. On perpetuals the premium is paid through funding, which can flip negative and erase the carry. You also carry exchange solvency, liquidation-on-the-short (if margin is thin), and execution risk. Treat the annualised figure as a best case before those frictions.

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